Letter writing aid for the blind



Sept. 23, 1958 o. M. CRAIG 7 2,852,862 LETTER WRITING AID FOR THE! BLIND Filed June 21, 1955 5 12 d /4 5 9 m 9 If /9 g J 011 5 f 7M WW .I 0 ll It, I I 1 B I I 6 b /l2 a z/ r T Y /2 E: 1 1" IN V EN TOR.

Ogygi/ I a/g. 5 MM HTTORNEYS r -Ir United States Patent fificc Patented Sept. 23, 1958 LETTER WRITING AID FOR THE BLIND Orville M. Craig, Filion, Mich. Application June 21, 1955, Serial No. 516,856

3 Claims. (Cl. 3 --38) This invention relates to writing aid for blind people and other persons with defective vision.

One of the prime objects of the invention is to design a writing aid by means of which the lines of writing may be evenly spaced, in parallel relation, on the sheet of Writing paper.

Another object is to design a neat and compact writing aid of rigid construction on which a tablet or sheet of paper can be mounted, and on which a spacer bar is positioned and adjusted to provide line by line parallel spacing as the letter is being written.

A further object of this invention is to provide a writing aid including an adjustable spacer bar, and provide means for securing the spacer bar in proper parallel relation on the writing material as it is adjusted each time a line is Written.

Still a further object is to provide a simple, practical, and relatively inexpensive writing aid for use by blind people and others which is very easy to operate to properly space the lines and which requires but one rotation of the spacer bar to accurately space the next line from the preceding written line.

With the above and other objects in view, the present invention consists in the combination and arrangement of parts, hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawing, and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims, it being understood that changes may be made in the form, size, proportion and minor details of construction, without departing from the spirit, or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a face elevational view of my writing aid showing the tablet in position and the spacer bar on the face of the paper.

Fig. 2 is an edge elevational view thereof.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional edge elevational view showing the cord guides, and the guide bar, etc.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary view illustrating the anchoring of the cord guides.

Fig. 5 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional edge elevational view of the backboard and stamping.

Referring now more particularly to the drawing in which I have shown the preferred embodiment of my invention, the numeral 8 indicates the backboard of the device. This is of rigid construction and can be formed of any desired satisfactory material, such as wood, wood substitutes, Masonite, or the like.

A stamping S is secured to the upper head end of the board 8 by means of screws or rivets 9, said stamping being formed of thin stock, with the upper edge section formed with a pair of spaced apart, rolled wing sections it), and an elongated slit 11 is formed in the lower edge of said stamping, the metal being raised as shown so that the back cover b of the writing tablet T may be readily inserted through said slit and the-tablet held in proper position on the board.

Guide cords 12 span the board and are connected to the opposite ends of a coiled spring 14 and thence lead outwardly through the rolled wing section 10, the free ends of the cords leading downwardly along the side edges of the tablet. A guide bar G spans the tablet T and as shown projects beyond the side edges thereof, said bar being preferably painted a jet black to assist in making it distinguish able to persons having but very limited vision.

The edges of the guide bar G are notched as at 15 and the guide cords 12 are wound, one revolution around this notched section, thence the cords lead downwardly and are inserted in a slit 16 provided in the lower edge of the board, with a knot 17 on the end to securely anchor it in position. A staple 18 spans the slit 16 to prevent the board cracking, and the cord 12 is trained thereover, this serves to raise the cord from the face of the board so that the guide bar can be readily manipulated when near the lower edge of the board. The spring 14 serves as an equalizer to equalize the tension on the cords and prevent breakage should the cord or bar catch on an obstacle and be sharply pulled.

With the cords l2 anchored on the board and the guide bar G in position and connected thereto, the first step is to insert the back cover b of the tablet T through the slit 11 so that the binding d of the tablet engages the stamping S with the guide bar G disposed on the face of the tablet. The user then rotates or rolls the guide bar to adjust it towards the top of the tablet at the point where it is desired to begin the letter. Then as each line is written, the bar is rotated (rolled) downwardly so that it forms a guide for the next line, and so on to the bottom of the page or end of the letter. This spacing eliminates any possibility of running the lines together or writing over an already written line, and it further forms a guide for the writers pencil. One turn of the guide bar is all that is required to properly space.

This arrangement is very easy to manipulate, it is readily usable, and persons with defective sight or no sight at all can write a very neat, accurately lined longhand letter.

From the foregoing description it will be obvious that I have perfected a very simple, practical and economical writing guide for the blind and other persons with defective eyesight.

What I claim is:

1. A writing aid of the class described comprising, a backboard, a stamping secured to the upper end thereof and formed with an elongated slit to accommodate the back cover of a tablet and secure it on said backboard, resiliently connected guide cords spanning the upper face of said backboard above said tablet and leading downwardly adjacent the side edges of the tablet with their free ends anchored to said board, and adjustable guide means spanning said tablet and connected to said guide cords for moving said guide means a predetermined distance in parallel spaced apart steps as said guide means is actuated.

2. A writing aid of a character described comprising, a relatively rigid board, means for releasably securing a Writing pad thereon, resiliently connected guide cords spanning the upper face of said board, each cord leading downwardly along one edge of the pad, slits in the lower edge of the board for anchoring the free ends of the guide cords thereto, and a guide bar disposed on and spanning said pad and around which each individual cord is looped so that the rotation of said bar moves it a predetermined distance in parallel spaced apart steps.

3. A writing aid of the class described comprising, a rigid board, a stamping secured to the upper end section thereof and provided with an elongated slot therein for insertion of the back member of a tablet therethrough, rolled wings on said stamping resiliently connected guide #75 cords leading through said wings and along the side edges of the tablet, a guide bar disposed on said tablet and provided with reduced sections around which the guide cords are looped and means for anchoring the ends of the guide cords to the board. 5

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,110,488 Inscho Sept. 15, 1914 10 4, Boyde Aug. 24, 1915 Bryan et a1. Feb. 4, 191 9 Yenofkian May 10, 1927 Raschick Aug. 6, 1929 Blackstone Oct. 30, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS Germany Nov. 10, 1919 

